DMC: Sweet Dreams
by Sin Oan
Summary: A demon puts the entire city to sleep, and it falls to Patty to enter the dream world and try to wake Dante up. But will she want to wake up herself?
1. Chapter 1: Wakeup Call

Well here I am, writing another Devil May Cry fic. I didn't think I would, but someone actually made a request. So this is the first request fic I have ever written. This is for general zargon, I hope you like it. And if anyone else happens to read and enjoy it as well, then great! I hope you do.

This is a semi-sequel to my previous DMC fic, Birthday Bash. You don't have to read that first, but I may make references to it in this, so it wont hurt if you have read that story. This story will contain some Patty x Dante pairing and fluff, but don't run screaming from the room as I don't write anything really smutty or graphic. Anymore.

This is just the first part. I don't know how frequent updates will be as I am also working on a Rozen Maiden fic at the moment. I will try to have a new chapter every week or two at the most. In the meantime, please read and enjoy!

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><p><strong>DMC: Sweet Dreams<strong>

Chapter 1: Wakeup Call

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><p>It was a hot, lazy summer afternoon at Restaurant Fredi, the sunlight streaming through the big glass windows and gently cooking the air inside. The stifling heat had driven away most of the customers, leaving just two people sitting together who could stand the sauna like temperatures. The air conditioning was of course broke, and Fredi the owner was trying to repair it himself, as all the service repairmen were already on call.<p>

Patty Lowell swallowed the last of her melting strawberry sundae and dropped her spoon in the empty dish with a contented sigh. Due to the heat today, she'd opted to wear a simple green t-shirt and knee length trousers instead of one of the many dresses she owned and adored. She brushed a strand of blond hair away from her sparkling blue eyes and turned her attention to the man sitting opposite her.

Dante, the devil hunter. The Son of Sparda. The heat didn't seem to bother him, and if it did he never showed it. He was still finishing off his strawberry sundae, taking his time with it since he had no plans today and nowhere to be. He wasn't even sweating from the heat, Patty noticed, as she reached up and wiped her brow. She regarded Dante for a moment longer before breaking the heavy silence between them.

"You know Dante, we should really see about getting you some new clothes," she said. Dante glanced over at her and frowned.

"Why? What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

Patty almost laughed at that. "Nothing. Except that those are the same clothes you were wearing the day we met. You always wear the same thing. Do you even own any other clothes?"

Dante smirked, just barely, and returned to eating his sundae. "I'm like a superhero, Patty; this is my costume."

Patty scoffed. Superhero! As if! The man was a born slob. He sat around all day scoffing pizza and guzzling beer, too lazy to even watch television most days. If it weren't for her cleaning up his mess, he'd be living in a pigsty as well. The only thing Dante had going for him in that regards was the super powers, but there was more to being a hero than that.

Well ... he wasn't _that_ bad, she had to admit. He did save people. He had saved her more than once. And he was kind, if you dug really deep. It was just that those good qualities were sort of buried under a mountain of empty pizza boxes and crumpled beer cans. Dante had more than a few rough edges, and Patty really wished he would at least try and smooth some of them over.

She leaned on the table and grinned at him. "Maybe you should let me update your wardrobe; that could be fun!"

Dante finished his strawberry sundae and pushed the empty dish away, before slumping back in his chair. He stifled a yawn. "Forget it Patty. If I let you dress me I'd probably end up looking like a gay cowboy or something."

Before she could reply to that, Cindy the waitress skated over on her roller blades and dropped a slip of paper on the table in front of Dante. It was of course the bill. She smiled at them both.

"Did you enjoy your strawberry sundaes?" she asked cheerfully. Patty gave an enthusiastic yes, whilst Dante picked up the bill, shot it a brief look, and then dropped it back down on the table.

"Put it on my tab, will ya?" he said casually. Cindy sighed wearily.

"I'm sorry Dante, I can't do that. Fredi says your tab is full, and if you don't pay up he's going to bar you from coming here."

Patty gaped at the devil hunter in astonishment, before narrowing her eyes in accusation. "I don't believe it, you actually treated me to a strawberry sundae without even having the money to pay for it? That's low, Dante, really."

Dante rolled his eyes and shrugged helplessly. "I can't help it if that penny pinching bitch keeps taking all the money I earn," he said, referring of course to Lady, whom he was seriously in dept to. Cindy scowled at him.

"Dante! Don't swear in front of the little lady!" she chastised, "Now are you gonna pay up or what?"

Dante said and did nothing, prompting Patty to give an irate huff and reach into her pocket. She pulled out a tiny orange purse and took out a folded up note from inside. "Here, I guess this one is on me," she said, handing Cindy the money. The waitress gathered up their empty sundae dishes and skated off, leaving the two sitting in a smoldering silence. Patty folded her arms and glared at Dante.

"Honestly Dante, that's pathetic - making a kid pay the bill."

Dante frowned slightly. "Hey, I'd pay up if I had the money, I'm just broke right now."

"Then get a job you lazy good for nothing layabout!" Patty snapped at the unconcerned devil hunter, "Really, how are you ever going to get a girlfriend when you don't have a job or any money?"

He shrugged and leaned his head back, closing his eyes. "I don't want one, I'm just fine being by myself," he replied. Patty leaned back in her seat as well, turning her head sharply away in annoyance at his attitude.

"That's a load of nonsense, Dante. You might be able to fool everyone else with your tough guy routine, but not me."

Dante opened his eyes and fixed them on the frustrated little girl, puzzled by her words. "What the heck is that supposed to mean?" he asked. Patty extended her hands as if to say that the answer was painfully obvious.

"I know you a lot better than you think, Dante. You put up all these walls around yourself so everyone will think you're untouchable, but it's just so you don't get hurt."

Dante chortled. "You make that sound like it's a bad thing."

Patty glared back at him, her hands on her hips. "You're so used to losing the people you care about that you don't want to get close to anyone in case you lose them too!" Her shoulders slumped and she sighed softly as Dante's face tightened up. "Don't you ever want to fall in love?" she added wistfully.

Dante said nothing. He folded his arms and stared at the floor as if he held a personal grudge against it. Patty waited for an answer, but when it became clear that none was forthcoming she tutted and got to her feet.

"Okay fine, be all moody and broody, but I'm calling Morrison. If he has any work for you then you _are_ going to take it," she instructed with an iron tone that brooked no disagreement, "After all you owe me for two strawberry sundaes ..."

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><p>Morrison did have a job lined up for Dante as it happened, but what was really surprising was the client.<p>

"Twelve people so far have all been afflicted," said Lady, handing Dante a list of names and details. He sat perched on the edge of his desk, glancing them over while Lady stood with her arms crossed, waiting for his take on the situation.

"So ... what?" he said after a while, "Are they all in a coma or something?"

"No. According to the doctors all evidence points to them being asleep. They all show signs of dreaming. The only thing is-"

"No one and nothing can wake them up," Morrison finished for her as he lay back on Dante's couch. He lit up a cigarette as Dante frowned at the list in his hands.

Twelve people had all been brought to the local hospital after failing to wake up in the morning. This had happened over the course of the last three days, and so far nothing had been able to rouse these people from their deep slumber. Noise, drugs, cold water ... nothing. They were all seemingly stuck in a dream state, unable to awake. And more ... victims, if you could call them that, were being brought in each morning.

"One of the doctors who treated me in the past for injuries I got on the job called me up and told me about it," Lady explained further, "She figured that maybe the cause was something supernatural, and that I might be able to help solve this little medical mystery."

"But you can't," teased Dante as he handed her the list back, "You don't have a clue what's causing it. So why ask me?"

Lady reached around and pulled out a small glossy photograph, which she handed to Dante. He snatched it from her and peered at it, wondering what she was showing him this time. It looked like a snapshot of a brick wall. Not in itself interesting, however there was a quite noticeable symbol burned into the stone. From the look of it, it was very probably demonic in origin.

"That symbol has been turning up all over the city," said Lady, her tone troubled by this development, "Usually near the victims of this sleeping disorder. I have no idea what it represents. I showed it to Trish, but she didn't have a clue. Then I asked Morrison to see if he could find someone who might know what it is."

"And you thought I would?" Dante asked his agent incredulously. Dante really wasn't the most knowledgeable of people, and research just wasn't something he ever did. Morrison blew out a smoke ring and shrugged.

"It looks demonic. You're a demon," he answered flatly, as if daring Dante to argue with this simple piece of logical reasoning. Dante sighed and stared at the symbol in the photo. No, he did not recognize it in the least. Why would he? One demonic glyph looked much like another as far as he was concerned.

"Maybe you could show it to Patty," Lady suggested playfully, "I hear she's become quite the little demonologist since she reunited with her mother."

"Patty?" Dante gave her a disbelieving look, perhaps not without good reason. When it came to identifying unknown paranormal sigils, a cutesy fussy little girl is not usually the first person that comes to mind when searching for help in such matters. From the look on her face, Lady seemed almost inclined to agree.

"I know, it sounds like a long shot, but I've been spending some time with the kid; she really knows her stuff Dante. It looks as if she's set to follow in Allen Lowell's footsteps. Could be worth a try."

Hell, why not? Dante blinked groggily at the picture in his hand and yawned widely. He was tired. Really tired. What he could sure do with right now was a nap. But Patty had pushed him into getting this job, so the least she could do was offer a helping hand if she knew anything about this.

Right then, that was settled. He'd swing by her place and ask her to look into this weird symbol thing. Then he'd head back to the office to catch forty winks while he waited for her to call, if and when she found anything. Sounded like a plan.

Stifling yet another wide yawn, Dante reached for his coat and headed for the door.


	2. Chapter 2: The Lowell Legacy

**DMC: Sweet Dreams**

Chapter 2: The Lowell Legacy

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><p>The full moon cast a bright silvery sheen over the city as it hung in the clear, starry night sky. The silence in the Lowell estate library was disturbed only by the gentle ticking of an ancient grandfather clock, which showed the time to be ten minutes past midnight. There was also a gentle rustle as Patty turned the page of a leather bound book, which was resting atop a pile of other volumes, many of them still open.<p>

She was burning the midnight oil, as the saying went. Dante had asked for her help - _her help!_ - for a job he was doing, and she was determined not to let him down. Apparently Lady had spoken quite highly of her new talent for demonic knowledge, a fact that had caused Patty to beam with joy for quite some time afterwards. She greatly admired Lady, who despite being very _un_-ladylike much of the time was nevertheless quite _cool_, at least as far as Patty was concerned. She was always so strong and capable, yet without the apathy and laziness that plagued Dante.

Despite the lateness of the hour, Patty was wearing one of her white dresses, decorated with black lace and ribbons, and an Alice band in her hair. Her pendant hung from around her neck, the blue jewel gleaming in the soft light of the electric lamps. She was very tired from hours spent pouring over old texts without success, yet there was still a sense of energy and enthusiasm about her that kept her perked up.

Her mother had come to see her around eleven, urging Patty to go to bed and get some sleep. Patty had insisted that she wasn't going to rest until she found the answer Dante and Lady wanted, and Nina Lowell had sighed and kissed her goodnight, before retiring to bed herself. Patty felt a little bit guilty over that. Her mother let her get away with quite a lot, most likely out of a sense of guilt at having abandoned Patty when she was just a baby, being absent from her life for ten years. Patty tried her best not to make her feel any worse over it, and she genuinely did love her mother.

She blinked sleepily as she realized that she had just reread the same paragraph three times over, and still had no idea what it actually said. She was tired, and her thoughts were wandering. Her mind drifted towards thoughts of Dante, prompting Patty to sit up straight and scowl at nothing in particular.

Dante. Why _was_ she trying so hard to do this for him? The devil hunter honestly expected nothing useful from her, that much had been clear when he'd left the photo behind. That in itself was a good reason to do it - prove him wrong, show him that he should have a little more faith in her. But it wasn't the only reason. Patty squirmed a little inside as she considered her feelings for Dante. They were ... confusing to say the least. A few months ago she'd accidentally traveled back in time to when he was just a kid, witnessed a massive tragedy in his life, and of course _kissed_ him. And she'd gleefully reminded him of it shortly after returning to the present.

He of course dealt with it the best way he could - by pretending it had never happened, perhaps thinking that if he ignored the issue enough it would go away and he wouldn't have to think about it anymore. Patty had briefly considered telling the others - Lady, Trish and Morrison even - but eventually decided against it. It felt like her little secret. No, _their_ little secret. It was just that ... the way that secret made her feel was downright confusing. Dante was like her big brother. She had obviously been happy kissing him when he was just a kid like her, but thinking about it in the context of the Dante she dealt with every day was just plain ... weird. Dante _wasn't_ her brother, but it felt like he was. And yes, he was also a good deal older than her.

"Ohhh! Knock it off you stupid girl!" Patty scolded herself. She clutched at her head and shook it from side to side to throw the irritating and confusing thoughts from her mind. Thinking about it wasn't helping matters, and she'd be much better off if she just followed Dante's example and forgot the whole thing. Seeking a distraction, Patty slammed the book shut and got to her feet, stretching and yawning as she did so.

Books. Lots of books. Her mother had inherited a fair collection of volumes over the years, several of which were written by Allen Lowell himself, and subsequently translated by his descendants throughout the ages. Patty had read through as many of them as she could, eager to learn as much as possible about her powerful and legendary ancestor. Many of his books were about demons, and Patty had gained quite a bit of knowledge and insight on the subject over the past few months since she'd started reading through them.

Allen Lowell had been the foremost expert on demons in the human world, thus Patty was sure that the demonic symbol from the photograph would be in one of his books. It just had to be. As she strode past the dusty library shelves, she let her gaze wander over the spines, vaguely glancing at the titles of each volume. She stopped abruptly and stared at one in particular that caught her eye. It had no title on the spine, and it gleamed oddly in the light. Frowning, Patty reached out and removed the book in question.

"What a strange book," she observed aloud, her voice seemingly muffled by the oppressive hush of the late night air. It _was_ a strange book. For one thing the cover was clad in some kind of metal decoration, and Patty was startled when she noticed that the design on the front cover vaguely resembled a mask or a face of some sort. It had a large circular indentation in the centre of it, and as Patty opened the book up to flip through the pages she was further surprised to see that they were all blank.

Every last page.

"Huh? What gives?" she muttered in confused annoyance. A blank book? What was the point of that? She poked and prodded at it, hoping to reveal some kind of concealed secret, but to no avail. Finally she slammed it shut and glared at the thing, as if she were furious with it for refusing to reveal its purpose to her. It was then that she noticed something, something that grabbed for her attention and waved a flag of importance. As she held the book in front of her, her pendant caught the light and gleamed, and Patty realized suddenly that it was exactly the same size and shape as the indentation on the front cover.

"I wonder ..." She set the book down on the nearest table and removed her pendant from around her neck. She then quickly unfastened it from the chain before holding it over the book. Yes, it looked as if it would fit perfectly. Patty slotted her pendant into the cover and pushed it in firmly. It was indeed a perfect fit.

The book suddenly snapped open, causing Patty to jump with fright. She took a step back as the pages flicked past, and she could see writing appearing on the previously blank paper. Writing and symbols that shifted and weaved on the page as if alive. The lights in the room flickered for a moment and Patty felt the floor vibrate beneath her feet. With another sudden snap the book shut itself and everything seemed to settle down for a moment.

All was quiet and still once more. Cautiously, Patty approached the strange book, her imagination running wild at the possibilities of what it might contain, what secrets it might hold in its pages. Her pendant had fit it perfectly! Allen's Tear had seemingly unlocked something in one of his old books. What could it be? Was it perhaps dangerous? And wasn't this exciting!

Just as she was about to reach out and touch the book, the thing shot up into the air, spun around a few times, and then hovered in front of her. Patty felt the overwhelming sensation that the jewel in her pendant was staring at her, almost like an eye. The front cover really did look like an odd kind of mask in a way. She gasped as it moved and took a step back once more.

"And just who might you be, young lady?" said a voice. Patty almost jumped out of her skin when she heard it. It came from the book and sounded oddly metallic, as if someone were talking out of an old radio speaker from the forties or fifties. She gathered her composure and clenched her hands tight at her side, determined not to appear as the frightened little girl she so obviously was.

"Patty Lowell," she answered, her voice quavering slightly, "Who are _you?_"

"Lowell? My my, fancy that," said the book. It _was_ the book talking. A talking book. A talking, flying book! Well, she'd seen stranger things before. Still.

"Well?" Patty prompted, "I gave you my name, it's only proper for you to do the same."

"Quite right my dear," the book answered with it's tinny metallic voice, "My name is ... what was it again? Ehh ... oh, that's right! Lowell. Allen Lowell. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance young lady."

Patty gaped, her bright blue eyes wide and staring in stunned amazement. Allen Lowell? _The_ Allen Lowell? But ... but ... it _couldn't_ be! Could it? She frowned with evident puzzlement and moved slightly to one side. The book turned so that the front cover continued to face her.

"I had an ancestor named Allen Lowell," Patty said carefully, "But he's dead. You can't be him, can you?"

The book gave her a short sharp laugh. "The one and only! Sorcerer, alchemist, demonologist and all round genius. And you are quite right, I am very much deceased. Not that I'd ever let a little thing like that get in my way."

Patty stopped moving and crossed her arms. "What do you mean? What _are_ you exactly?"

The pages in the book rustled for a brief moment before it answered. "Well," it said, "it seemed such a shame to let my vast knowledge and experience go to waste by simply _dying_. So I created this special grimoire and bound my spirit to its pages. Of course I didn't want my expertise to fall into the wrong hands, therefore I designed it so that I would only awaken if one of my descendants placed my pendant into the slot in the cover. Which you did."

"Oh," said Patty, which seemed woefully insufficient, but she was somewhat at a loss for words. Meanwhile the book whirled around, as if examining its surroundings.

"Hmm, well I cannot say I am surprised to find myself in a library. That is where many tomes tend to gravitate. Now then ... Miss Patty was it?" the book turned to regard her once more, "How may I be of assistance?"

"What?" Patty blinked with surprise at the things words. Assistance? It was offering her help? "What do you mean?" she asked.

The book sighed with obvious impatience, as if its tremendous talents were being sorely wasted. "As I explained young lady, I went to enormous effort to preserve my immense occult knowledge and experience so that I might offer assistance to future generations of Lowell's. Now I presume you awoke me because you required my help with something, did you not?"

Well no, she hadn't. In fact she hadn't even realized at the time that her actions might awaken the long dead spirit of her ancestor. It wasn't as if he had left any instructions behind. Or if he had she hadn't found them anywhere. Still, it was offering to help after all, so why not take it up on that offer?

Patty grabbed the photograph Dante had given her earlier and thrust it eagerly before the floating book. "Tell me what this symbol is!" she blurted out, not willing to look a gift horse in the mouth or lose such a golden opportunity to find the answer she sought.

"Hmph, is _that_ all," the book protested, seemingly annoyed at having been awoken for such a trivial task, "Very well; I, Allen Lowell, greatest sorcerer the world has ever known or ever shall know, will put my boundless knowledge to use ... identifying a mere symbol. I should hope that this is a matter of no small importance young lady."

"It is!" Patty insisted, growing annoyed by its pompous attitude, "Do you recognize it or not?"

The book actually huffed at her, before opening up and floating closer so that she could read the pages it presented to her. Patty peered close and examined the text intently. It was initially in some language she neither recognized nor understood, but the words transformed before her very eyes into a flowing English script. There was a picture of the symbol in question, and yes it was the one in the photograph. Patty read the information below it.

_The Dreamcatcher_

_This symbol is the calling card of a demon named Morpheus. It appears whenever he works his magic over humans, casting out a web to ensnare unsuspecting victims in their sleep. Those caught by the demon's magic become trapped within the dream world, unable to escape or awaken._

_Since dreams alter the perceptions and memories of the dreamer to fit the scenario of the dream, Morpheus' victims are often unaware that they have been trapped. Instead they are forced to live out whatever twisted scenario he chooses to inflict on them, as he has power to shape and define the dreams of those he ensnares._

_Whenever this symbol shows itself, it is usually advisable not to fall asleep until Morpheus has either been dealt with or moves on._

"It _is_ the work of a demon then!" Patty announced, her blood pumping with excitement at having found the answer. She could go to Dante and tell him! And he could track down this Morpheus demon and kill him, and then presumably the demon's victims would be able to wake up. Simple! And she had discovered the answers!

The book snapped shut and floated back a short distance, regarding Patty with the jewel of her pendant once more. "Am I to take it then that Morpheus is in the area?"

"Yeah," Patty nodded, "He's already trapped twelve people in their dreams, and unless I tell Dante he'll probably trap more!"

"Twelve?" the book sounded surprised by the number, "Is that all? How strange ..."

"Strange? Why? Does the number mean something?"

"No, not really. I merely find it odd that Morpheus would snare so few people. In my experience that particular demon has been fond of placing whole towns and cities in unending slumber. He once put an entire kingdom to sleep in fact."

That ... sounded quite bad. Whole cities? If this was the work of Morpheus, then why was he working his magic on so few people? Unless ... unless he was testing the waters. Getting back into the swing of things if he'd been out of the game for a long time. If so, then ... oh no.

"If I may make a suggestion ..." said the book, apparently reading her mind, or at least the deeply worried expression on her face, "I can cast a spell that will reveal the full extent of the demon's magic. If you can take me somewhere with a good view of the surrounding area I could show you."

With a feeling of gnawing dread growing inside of her, Patty led the book out of the library and to the balcony just outside her bedroom window. She stopped for a second to turn her bedroom light on, which prompted the book to turn to her.

"No, leave the lights extinguished; you will see better that way."

She did as suggested and turned the light off, before joining the floating tome on the balcony. They had a decent view of this part of town, though they could by no means see everything from here. They would probably be better standing atop one of the taller buildings downtown, but Patty didn't want to wait that long.

"Very well, now close your eyes," the book instructed once more. Feeling increasingly nervous and anxious, Patty closed her eyes and clenched her hands at her side in anticipation. She felt a strange tingling sensation in her face, and a moment later was told to go ahead and open her eyes.

She did. She opened them wide. And then she gaped.

"Yes, as you can no doubt see," said the book with remarkable calmness, "it appears that Morpheus has resumed his normal methods and has cast his web over most, if not all of this city of yours."

The entire city as far as Patty could see was enveloped in an eerie swirling fog, with curling tendrils that snaked through the streets and clung to the rooftops. Even her own house was not exempt from its insidious touch.

"So that means ... that means that ..." she started to say. Allen Lowell finished for her.

"Anyone sleeping right now shall remain asleep forever ..."


	3. Chapter 3: The Sandman

Thanks for reading and reviewing folks. With regards to the Patty x Dante relationship, I have to say that I already have the fic planned out and I can't really change anything that much without messing it all up.

I would hope however that nobody expects me to turn Dante into a pedophile. I try my best to keep characters canon and in character, and I don't think for a second that Dante would enter into a serious romantic relationship with a little girl like Patty. I don't think it's unrealistic though for a young girl like Patty to develop a crush on Dante. She's just conflicted about it, because of the reasons she mentions in the previous chapter.

I'm a yuri fan anyway, so if I was going to seriously ship Patty with someone, it'd be with another girl. The only reason I haven't already is because people complain a lot when I write yuri. Really a lot.

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><p><strong>DMC: Sweet Dreams<strong>

Chapter 3: The Sandman

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><p>"Mom!"<p>

Patty's cry was a borderline shriek, as she burst into her mother's bedroom and ran over to the slumbering woman. Allen Lowell floated in after her, moving at a more sedate pace. It was difficult to become frantic about things when you happen to be a thousand year old dead wizard bound to a grimoire. Life just seems less urgent.

"Mom! Wake up mom, wake up! Ohhh!" Patty growled in frustration as her attempts to shake Nina Lowell awake failed to net a positive result. Allen peered down at the sleeping figure with ... well, not an expression of mild interest, because he didn't have the means to express such things in his current form, but he at least gave off a sort of air that suggested the same.

"Another of my descendants?" he observed, "It is somewhat gratifying to see that my lineage has not completely died out."

"Ohh, mom ..." Patty wailed, ignoring the floating tome. She couldn't wake her mother up, which meant that she was under the influence of that damned demon. According to the text about Morpheus, he had the power to inflict any dreams upon his victims he so chose. Her mother could be living a nightmare right now for all she knew. She had to do something!

"You're wasting your time," Allen pointed out with a somewhat bored tone, "Morpheus has her now. There's nothing you can do I'm afraid."

Patty spun to face the floating book, biting back angry tears. "There must be something!" she snapped bitterly, "You're Allen Lowell! You're supposed to be a legend! A sorcerer that had the power to control demons!"

"When I was alive, that was certainly true," Allen conceded patiently, "Now however I am afraid I am little more than a magical aid. A floating encyclopedia if you will."

Patty gave another frustrated growl and turned back to her sleeping mother. Her face did not seem troubled at least. Patty took some comfort from that. Yet if what Allen said was true then the entire _city_ would be the same way. Everyone trapped in their dreams. What would happen to them if left like that? Would they starve?

Allen gave what might have been a cough, if he still had a throat to clear. "I suppose it goes without saying, but if you were able to track down and slay Morpheus then naturally everyone under his spell would awaken. I hesitate to suggest such a course of action however, given that you do not seem the demon slaying type ..."

No, she wasn't, not really. She had repelled demons in the past with the help of her pendant, and performed a few other magical feats, but those were mostly one-off's. Then again, she _did_ happen to know one of the best devil hunters in the business.

"Dante!" Patty blurted out suddenly. Of course! If she told Dante everything she knew then he would be able to hunt down this demon and kill it easily. It was so simple. But ... wouldn't Dante be asleep now? Would Morpheus' spell affect him? He was part demon himself, maybe she could wake him up? It had to be worth trying.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Dante!" Patty repeated, facing Allen once more, this time her face lighting up with sudden enthusiasm, "We have to go to Dante! If anyone could kill this demon, he could!"

Allen seemed dubious however. "The hour is quite late young lady. Isn't it just as likely that this Dante fellow will be asleep?"

Patty clenched her hands tightly before her, as if willing this plan to work. "Maybe, but Dante is half demon. He's the son of the legendary Sparda! If anyone could fight off this Morpheus creep, I bet Dante could!"

"Sparda?" Allen Lowell suddenly shot back from her and then proceeded to dart around the room like a ping pong ball, all the while laughing hysterically.

"What?" Patty snapped, "What's so funny?"

It took a few seconds for him to calm down, and when he did Patty almost felt as if he were wiping a tear away from an eye, despite having neither eyes, tears or hands. He chuckled for a few seconds more. "Sparda had a _son?_ You mean to tell me that old goat actually took the time to procreate? Ha! What an absurd notion."

Patty frowned at his words, somewhat puzzled by them. "Huh? Why? You sound like you knew him."

"Oh, I did my dear, very much so. We were ... how shall I put it? Old war buddies you might say. The man owes me a hundred gold sovereigns for one thing."

"Owed," Patty corrected, "I'm pretty sure he's dead now."

"Ha!" Allen laughed again, "Don't you believe it my dear. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if the old coot faked his death just to avoid all the debts he accrued, which were _many_, take it from me. I wasn't the only one he owed money to."

"Wow," Patty murmured, surprised by this. Like father like son, she guessed. Who would have thought Dante and his dad had that in common? And her ancestor was an old friend of Dante's father! She couldn't wait to tell him that. After they dealt with Morpheus of course.

"Right," she said, stomping her foot once to show her determination, "I'm going to the Devil May Cry office to find Dante. If he isn't awake when I do, then I'm going to do whatever it takes to _get_ him awake ..."

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><p>The city was eerily quiet. Spooky even. There was not a soul in sight as Patty hurried down a fog shrouded street, which was perhaps just as well, given that she must be a very odd sight indeed. A young girl running through the city at night, accompanied only by a magical floating book.<p>

You could _feel_ it. Feel the fact that everyone was asleep, trapped, unable to awaken. It was almost like walking through a ghost town. Everything felt strangely silent and lifeless, like a graveyard. Even the dogs and cats were sound asleep. Creepy.

Patty decided to take a shortcut through the park, which would shave ten minutes off her journey. Normally she could get a ride to the Devil May Cry office, but on a good day she would often walk for the fresh air and exercise. She knew the way, and knew how to get there quicker than sticking to the main roads and streets.

"Whatever are you doing running around?" a voice called out from the darkness. Patty stopped abruptly, her heart leaping into her throat with fright. She stood in the middle of the park, which was lit by several lamp posts. The voice had come from the roundabout to her right. As she glanced over at it, it rotated, bringing the speaker into sight.

"Shouldn't you be tucked away like a good little girl?" said the stranger, "It must surely be past your bedtime ..." he added, his voice mocking. Patty stared at him. It looked like a young boy, no older than she was, wearing an expensive black suit and overcoat that matched his equally dark hair and glittering eyes.

"You're one to talk," Patty shot back, irritated by his leering tone and amused expression, "Who the heck are you anyway?"

"Oh him?" Allen announced in a bored fashion, "That would be Morpheus."

! thought Patty. That kid was the demon who had caused all of this? Well ... huh. She knew demons could take human form, but still ...

"Oh, I'm recognized am I?" said the boy, giving a short chuckle, "And by a talking book no less. And here I thought _I_ was strange."

"You _are_ strange," Allen pointed out, "You're the only demon I know of that likes to play with humans the way you do. I never really understood you myself."

Morpheus frowned now, seemingly troubled by Allen's comments. He fixed his dark and sinister gaze on the book hovering beside Patty as if trying to discern its true nature. "That voice sounds terribly familiar ... have we met before?"

"1518 I believe," answered Allen matter-of-factly, "I froze you into a block of ice and deposited you in Siberia to keep you out of trouble. I probably should have killed you instead, but you were annoyingly durable."

Realization dawned on the demon's face and it showed in an astonished expression for a brief moment, before being replaced with a faintly bemused look. "Allen Lowell. Will wonders never cease. Aren't you supposed to be dead?"

Patty leaned forwards and narrowed her eyes, hands resting defiantly on her hips in what she presumably hoped was an intimidating stance. "I woke him up. Same thing I'm going to do to everyone else. Far too much sleeping going around if you ask me."

"No one did," Morpheus countered, not remotely impressed, "But by all means, go right ahead and try, for all the good it will do you. And oh yes," he glanced at his wristwatch in an exaggerated fashion, "it's quite late, aren't you even a little bit tired?"

Patty leaned back and ground her teeth in annoyance. She _was_ more than a little tired. Only the excitement of recent events had kept her going this long, but her eyelids were already starting to feel heavy, her head as foggy as the city now was. Morpheus saw all of this and smirked.

"Quite. Well, I shall be off for now; countless dreams to twist and shape however I want. So much fun to be had. I look forward to adding you to my collection when you-" he made a fake pillow with his hands and teasingly leaned his head against it, "-nod off."

Before Patty or Allen could answer, he vanished, leaving behind a light dusting of sand particles in his wake. Patty glared at the roundabout he'd been standing on, more determined than ever to see this demon get what he deserved. But first she had to find Dante, and if necessary wake him up.

Preferably before she fell asleep herself.


	4. Chapter 4: Nightcap

**DMC: Sweet Dreams**

Chapter 4: Nightcap

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><p>"What a garish sign," Allen observed upon their arrival at the Devil May Cry office. Patty didn't respond, she was too worried about Dante to think of anything else. It was getting more and more difficult for her to concentrate as well, and as she pushed the heavy door open, every part of her demanded that she curl up and go to sleep immediately.<p>

"Dante?" she called out tentatively, casting her bleary eyed gaze about, "Dante!"

The white haired devil slayer was lying on the couch, sound asleep. Geez, thought Patty, he was too lazy to even haul himself into bed. It was no wonder that Trish had left him - she probably got tired of Dante ignoring all of her attempts to make him behave like a proper, responsible adult. In some ways he was even more childish and immature than Patty herself was.

"Wake up Dante!" Patty yelled loudly as she hurried over to the sleeping figure. She leaned over and shook him as violently as she could, whilst continuing to shout his name over and over.

"No use," Allen sighed, hovering over Patty's shoulder, "Out like a light, same as everyone else."

"I'm not done yet!" Patty snapped, irritated beyond words that Dante wouldn't awaken. He was their only hope, and she wasn't about to let him nap the night away while Morpheus tormented a city full of dreamers. She grabbed the bucket she often used for mopping the floor, filled it with cold water, and then unceremoniously dumped it over Dante. Then she took a step back.

Dante snored.

"Ahhh, damn!" Patty cursed, fingers clutching the bucket tightly. Casting her weary blue eyes about the office, she spotted the jukebox in the corner and an idea struck. Putting the bucket away, Patty started the machine up and cranked the volume to maximum, filling the silent office with ear-splitting rock music loud enough to wake the dead.

"This _has_ to wake him up!" Patty shouted, her voice lost over the blaring noise of the jukebox. She stood before Dante, arms crossed, tapping her foot as she waited for the ungodly racket to rouse the devil hunter from his sleep.

"Good grief, turn that blasted contraption off!" Allen demanded as soon as it became apparent that it wasn't working. Sulking, Patty shut the machine off and then leaned against it. She pressed her hand against her face, feeling very faint and woozy. She was so _tired_. She felt as if she could sleep for a year. The dark embrace of the dream world beckoned invitingly, and she felt her willpower slipping away.

"So sleepy ..." she murmured, sliding down onto the floor, eyes drooping shut. She was just about to nod off completely when she felt a sharp, stinging crack in her arm, which jolted her fully awake. "Ouch!"

"You're welcome," Allen replied, arcs of energy crackling over the front cover of the book, "You really mustn't fall asleep Miss Patty. If you do then you will never awaken again."

"Ohh, I _know_," Patty moaned, getting unsteadily to her feet, "but it's really hard. I've never stayed up this late before." She yawned so widely her jaw actually hurt. The pain helped to keep her awake a little more, but sooner or later she wouldn't be able to fight it. She staggered over to the couch where Dante slept and slumped down beside him. Feebly, she started to shake him in the vain hope that he might wake up. It was no use, and she couldn't _think_ straight.

"Oh Allen, what am I gonna do?" she wailed with a low, tired voice, "I can't wake Dante up, and I can't stay awake much longer myself. Isn't there anything we can do?"

The magical tome floated down level with her face, and Patty got the impression that if he were capable of physical expressions, Allen would be wearing a deeply thoughtful look right now. She stared at the blue stone of her pendant fixed into the cover, mesmerized by it.

"Well ..." Allen said after a moments contemplation, "There may be one possible way to wake this Dante person up, however ..." he trailed off.

"However what?" Patty pressed, urging him on. She felt a tiny spark of hope inside, enough to keep her eyes open a little bit longer while she listened.

"It is extremely dangerous. You might become trapped in the dream world yourself."

Patty groaned, exhaustion battering every inch of her body. "That's gonna happen to me anyway, I might as well try _something_ before I drift off."

Allen seemed to consider it for a second or so before explaining further. "The only way to free someone from the demon's clutches without killing Morpheus, is to enter their dreams and drag them out of the dream world yourself."

Patty frowned, her thoughts sliding through her head with all the speed and grace of molten lava. They got there eventually though. "But ... but if I enter the dream world, won't I be just as trapped as everyone else?"

"Not necessarily. There is an alchemical draught I devised. If prepared and drunk, it will allow you to enter a state of lucid dreaming. In other words you will be asleep, yet you will be consciously aware that you are dreaming. The dream world will not cloud your mind or twist your thoughts, and you will retain the clarity you will need to escape. With another dreamer as well."

It certainly sounded like a plan, and nothing Patty had tried to wake Dante had even remotely succeeded. She was going to fall asleep soon in any case, she might as well go ahead with a plan that actually required her to do so anyway.

Allen opened up once more, this time to a page containing a recipe for preparing the lucidity draught he had mentioned. Patty actually asked him for a couple more jolts to keep herself awake for the time being, and Allen provided them, zapping her with painful electrical shocks akin to static. It hurt like hell, but it really helped her to stay awake. Pain is a powerful stimulant after all. Just not a particularly pleasant one.

Unfortunately Dante's cupboards were almost completely empty, and Patty was forced to trudge over to a nearby shop in order to forage the necessary supplies she needed. The place in question was locked up, but Allen was able to melt through the lock with little trouble. For a self-professed floating encyclopedia, he sure had a few tricks up his index. Patty did feel a little guilty about having to steal the things she needed, but she reminded herself that it _was_ to save the entire city. If that wasn't a good enough cause, what was?

Back at Devil May Cry, Patty mixed up the potion following the instructions written on the pages of her ancestor, all the while struggling to concentrate and stay awake. She couldn't afford to fall asleep until she was ready, otherwise she would become just another helpless victim of Morpheus.

"There," she said, holding up a glass filled with a disconcertingly green liquid, "I think it's done."

"Very good. Now drink it - all of it, or it won't work," Allen instructed. Patty did as required, wrinkling her nose in the process. It wasn't as bad as it looked however, and she gulped the entire thing down in one go.

"Hmm, kinda minty," she said, regarding the empty glass. She turned her attention back to Allen and blinked up at the floating book. "So how long will it-" she stopped in mid-sentence and folded up onto the floor, the glass slipping out of her hand and rolling away. Allen Lowell peered down at the girl and noted the steady breathing patterns, indicating that she was sound asleep. He glanced about the quiet office and realized that there was no longer anyone awake to talk to. It would be a long wait before he found out if his descendant was successful or not. He sighed.

"I wish I had something to read ..."


	5. Chapter 5: School Reunion

Here's another chapter. I'm only going to do two different dreams for this story as I don't want to drag it out too long. This is the first one. I hope it's okay. The second dream will certainly draw a lot of complaints, I'm sure, so I really do hope this one is okay. In any case please read and enjoy! And review if you can. Reviews are nice - they're like nummy cookies. I love cookies.

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><p><strong>DMC: Sweet Dreams<strong>

Chapter 5: School Reunion

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><p>Patty awoke to the shrill sound of a ringing bell. For one frightful moment she thought that she had fallen asleep at school again, and would open her eyes to find the teacher standing over her wearing an extremely severe scowl. It was with some reluctance then that she did open her eyes, lifting her head up off a desk as she did so. She blinked several times and examined her surroundings to find that yes, she <em>was<em> in school. Just not _her_ school.

"What the-?" she murmured softly. And then she remembered. She had been in the Devil May Cry office, and had just drunk the potion she'd prepared at Allen Lowell's instruction. So she was dreaming. From the look of it, she was dreaming of a school classroom, for that was where she found herself. Sitting at a desk in a classroom. But not a classroom she had ever laid eyes on. In fact the room in question seemed ... odd. It took her a moment to realize _why_. It was old. The classroom looked like something from a bygone decade. There was a blackboard for one thing, and not a computer in sight.

Patty glanced around. The classroom was empty. She was alone ... well, not completely. She could hear voices. Children's voices. Shouting, laughing. Playing. Everyone was outside. There was a large window to her right. She pushed up from the desk intending to go to it and look out, before realizing that something was different about herself.

"Huh?" Patty glanced down at herself and was startled to see that she was wearing what must presumably be a school uniform of some description. It consisted of a white blouse with a grey waistcoat over the top, a short grey skirt, knee length socks and shiny black shoes. Her hair was tied back into a ponytail as well. Besides her attire however, she seemed to be physically the same as she always was. That was a relief anyway. She had been worried for a brief moment that she might arrive in the dream world to find herself in the form of a mouse or a rabbit or somesuch.

Pressing her hands against the glass, she was startled by how _real_ it felt. Everything felt real, sharp, tangible. For a dream it was all pretty damn convincing. Perhaps that was just a side effect of the lucidity draught. It was a good thing she had taken it at any rate, as she was sure such a convincingly real dream would have little trouble drawing her in had she not. She peered through the glass and spied a playground outside, filled with countless children all running around and playing.

"Wait a second ..." she frowned and narrowed her eyes, trying to look past her own reflection in the glass to focus on a white haired boy in the playground below. The _only_ white haired boy. She could recognize him even from this distance - it was Dante. A few years older than when she'd seen him back in 1984, but still recognizably him. Like everyone else he was wearing a grey school uniform, and he was currently surrounded by a group of bigger, older boys. It didn't take a genius to tell that Dante was being bullied.

"I have to get out there!" Patty announced to the empty room, her voice echoing slightly. Spotting a door leading to a hallway, Patty weaved through the desks and ran out of the classroom. Searching frantically about, she set off again, tearing down the drab grey corridors with a speed that astonished her. It was strange; she'd never run this fast in her life, and she sprinted down the hallways with very little effort, not even getting out of breath. She almost laughed at that. Well why not? This was a dream after all - it wasn't like she had a physical body here to tire out. It was all in the mind. There was no reason for her to get out of breath in a dream, was there?

It didn't take Patty long to find her way outside to the playground, and spotting Dante amongst the crowds of noisy children was childsplay given that he was the only person with white hair amidst a sea of blonds and brunettes.

"Aww, is the lil orphan boy gonna cry?" one of the bullies taunted. He was easily bigger and heavier set than the slender devil boy. Dante scowled at him but said nothing. One got the impression he'd heard it all more times than you could count.

"Gonna bawl your eyes out and run to mommy?" another teased, before raising a hand to his mouth in mock apology, "Oops! Can't do that - mommies _dead_."

"Shut the hell up," Dante muttered, not looking the boy in the eye. He stared at the ground instead. The boy in question raised an exaggerated hand to his ear and frowned.

"What was that? Did the freak say something? Surely not."

"Well freak? Did ya?" the biggest asked, grabbing a hold of Dante's shirt. Dante glared at him with narrowed eyes, prompting the bully to spit in his face and throw him to the ground. Patty let out a gasp as he fell, landing painfully, saliva dripping down his cheek. One of the group chuckled.

"Aww, Snow White tripped and fell. How clumsy." He lashed out with a kick, which caught Dante in the ribs. Dante didn't cry out, he just struggled to push himself up to his feet. Before he could, he took a punch to the side of the head and went back down again.

"Stay on the ground, girly boy, that's where you belong."

Patty had seen and heard enough of this. It was pretty clear that Morpheus had decided to torment Dante with memories of his unpleasant childhood, and she wasn't about to stand by and let it continue any longer. She ran at the group of bullies and shoved the biggest over. At least, she had _intended_ to shove him over. What actually happened was she shoved him so hard that he immediately fell over and skidded across the playground for about a dozen feet, before slowing to a stop.

Needless to say, everyone was a bit shocked. It wasn't every day a little girl like Patty sent someone bigger and heavier than her flying. One of the bullies recovered from his surprise and tried to grab her. She slapped him so hard that he spun around and fell down. Drunk with power, Patty grabbed another by his shirt, lifted him over her head and hurled him at the boy she'd just shoved across the playground. He was beginning to get up when his friend flew into him and knocked him back down again.

Dante was staring in amazement at her, whilst the remaining three boys were gaping in disbelief. Patty was built exactly as you'd expect a little girl to be built. For her to toss boys bigger and older than her around defied common sense. But then this _was_ all a dream, and she was the only one that knew it. She grinned wickedly and extended her hands in a faux martial arts pose.

"I know Kung-Fu!" she snapped defiantly. Needless to say this was more than enough to send the bullies packing, and they ran as if chased by a devil from hell. Patty sneered smugly as they all retreated, before turning and helping Dante to his feet.

"Here, let me clean this off," she said soothingly, taking a handkerchief out and wiping the spit from Dante's face. "There you go."

"Thanks," Dante muttered, sounding bitter. Patty didn't blame him - she'd winced in sympathy with every blow he'd received. It was a wonder he wasn't black and blue. Actually, no it wasn't. He was Dante after all. Still, that made what she'd seen something of a mystery to her.

"Why did you let those creeps rough you up like that?" she asked, confused, "You could easily have fought back. I bet you could have floored them too."

Dante pressed a hand to the side of his head and flinched. "Yeah, I could have. Last time I did that though, I put the guy in hospital for a week. Got kicked out of school for it. Didn't want the same to happen here. Besides, I can take it. They all hit like a girl anyway." He stopped and regarded Patty for a moment, before adding; "Well ... like most girls. Hey, don't I know you?"

Patty tucked her handkerchief away and beamed. "Of course you do!"

Dante peered at her for a moment, before realization flashed within his clear blue eyes. "Skuld? Is that you?" He laughed suddenly and wrapped his arms around her in a fierce hug, "It is!"

"Err ..." said Patty, who had thought he'd recognize her for who she was. But then that would be silly. He was dreaming, and as a result his mind was geared towards the scenario of the dream. In this case it seemed as if he was living out an element of his past, a few years _after_ the disaster that had claimed his mother and his brother. This was going to make things tricky.

"Haha!" Dante laughed again and released her, "I thought I'd never see you again! What are you doing here?" He paused for a moment and regarded her, looking her up and down before nodding appreciatively, "Hey, not bad. You look really cute in that uniform."

"Oh boy ..." Patty sighed. How was she going to explain this one to him? "Look Dante, my name isn't Skuld-"

Dante shushed her suddenly, raising a finger to his lips to silence her, "My name's not Dante now either; it's Anthony." He shrugged. "Most people just call me Tony though, which backwards is 'why not' ..."

Patty grabbed Dante by the shoulders and shook him gently. "Dante, listen to me, this isn't real. You're trapped inside the dream world. The whole city is. It's the work of a demon named Morpheus. You're dreaming and you have to wake up!"

Dante stared at her as if she were crazy, before smirking and looking down. "Yeah, I wish. Believe me, there's nothing more I'd like than to wake up from this nightmare and find Vergil and mom waiting for me." His face tightened with pain. "That's not gonna happen though, no matter how much I want it to. I cant keep pretending they're okay. I have to face reality. I'm alone now, and they're never coming back."

Patty was at a loss for what to say. Whilst it was true that Dante _was_ dreaming, it was also true that waking up wouldn't happily reunite him with his mother and brother. They were both dead in the real world, just as much as they were here. Yet he _did_ have to wake up and deal with Morpheus. But how was she going to convince him? When you're dreaming you are utterly certain that the dream is real, to the extent that you play out your role in the dream no matter how silly it might later seem. Your memories and perceptions twist to fit your role within the dream - in this case Dante as a young boy in school.

Maybe she didn't have to convince him though. Allen had said that she just had to go into his dream and drag him out. So perhaps all she had to do was find the way out of the dream world and haul Dante through it? The question was, how was she supposed to find the exit?

"Well now, here's a curious surprise," said a familiar voice. Patty released Dante and turned to see Morpheus standing several feet away. He regarded her with eyes that drank the light like a pair of dark stars.

"Morpheus!" Patty snarled. The demon tilted his head and smirked.

"Here I was looking forwards to playing with you when you entered my domain," he said, his voice faintly amused, "And here you are ... except that you're not quite _right_. You know that you're dreaming, and I can't influence your mind at all. It's really quite vexing."

"Err, I take it you two know each other?" remarked Dante, not quite following the conversation. Patty ignored him for the moment and concentrated on the demon.

"I'm leaving this crummy place and I'm taking Dante with me!" Patty said, clenching her fists tight, "If you don't want to get chopped up into tiny pieces when Dante wakes up, you better run while you still can!"

"You think because you have a little clarity that you can make bold statements like that?" Morpheus sneered and straightened his head, "I am _God_ within the world of dreams Miss Lowell; this is _my_ world and I have no intention of allowing either of you to leave. Ever."

He clapped his hands and vanished in a shower of glittering sand particles. Before Patty or Dante could utter a word, every single child in the playground disappeared and the sky turned pitch black, as if the sun had simply winked out of existence. They were left alone, with only a handful of electric lights to illuminate the now eerily vacant and silent playground.

Well if that was the way he was going to play it, Patty wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of being intimidated. Features set with a firmly determined look, she grabbed Dante by the wrist and tugged at him to follow.

"Come on," she said, "we're getting out of here. I'm not about to let some smarmy little demon stand in our way. One way or another we _are_ going to wake up."


	6. Chapter 6: Breadcrumbs

**DMC: Sweet Dreams**

Chapter 6: Breadcrumbs

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><p>"Where are we going, exactly?" Dante asked, prompting Patty to stop and flail her arms about ineffectually.<p>

"I have no idea! I'm hardly a dream world cartographer!"

Dante frowned. "Cart-what now?"

Patty groaned. "Never mind. Lets just keep going."

The fact was, Patty had simply been too tired to ask Allen for specific details on exactly _how_ to leave the dream world once inside. Now here she was, and she didn't have the faintest idea how to actually wake herself and Dante up. Given that Morpheus was now aware of her little intrusion, she strongly suspected that he wasn't going to make things any easier for her.

They wandered through the dark and empty corridors of the school, which were lit only by the harsh white overhead light strips. The entire building felt so empty it was almost palpable, and their footfalls echoed through the silent hallways in emphasis of this. Just as Patty was about to despair at ever finding a way out, they rounded a corner and found before them a very odd sight indeed.

"What the heck?" Dante muttered, confused. There was a bright, almost fluorescent line of chalk drawn down the middle of the corridor, which disappeared through a set of double doors ahead of them. On the floor where the chalk line began lay a discarded book. Patty approached it cautiously and scooped it up. As she straightened and examined the front cover, a smile spread across her face.

_Hansel & Gretel_

_by Allen Lowell_

Pictured on the cover below the title was a photograph of Patty and Dante together. Patty lowered the book and stared at the chalk line on the floor, her heart beating faster as she realized just what it actually was.

"It's a trail of breadcrumbs!" she laughed brightly, handing the book to Dante. He stared at it, then at her, completely at a loss.

"I don't get it."

"Don't you know the story of Hansel and Gretel?" Patty asked him, before explaining, "The characters in the story get lost, but they're able to find their way home because they left a trail of breadcrumbs behind them. Allen is helping us! He's showing us the way out of the dream world!" she pointed excitedly to the chalk line.

Dante shrugged helplessly, still not following a word she was saying. "What 'dream world'? And who the heck is this Allen person?"

Patty had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at him. This was getting quite annoying. She reached out and grabbed a hold of his wrist, before tugging him in the direction the line followed. "Come _on_ Dante, we don't have time for this, just trust me."

"No!" Dante snapped suddenly. He pulled his hand away from her and took a step back, before tossing the book away. "I don't believe any of this. How do I even know you are Skuld? Or Patty, or whatever the heck your name is? You could be a demon in disguise!"

Patty rounded on him and clenched her hands in frustration. They didn't have time for this! "I'm not!" she insisted in what she hoped was a convincing tone. Dante however was far from convinced. He shook his head and crossed his arms.

"I'm not moving another step until you prove you are who you say you are."

Patty gaped at him. How was she meant to do that? And why did he have to be so damn stubborn? They needed to get out of here, preferably before Morpheus decided to rain fire down on them. She stamped her foot in irritation at his behavior and shook, grumbling under her breath. And then a thought suddenly occurred to her. She stopped and unclenched her hands, her expression softening.

"Dante," she said quietly, casting her mind back, "when we first met, you told me ... you told me that you were afraid of the dark. Scared of it. But not ... not if you had your brother Vergil with you. You felt safe when he was around, safe enough that the dark didn't scare you so much. Isn't that true?"

Dante seemed startled by her words. He unfolded his arms and gaped at her for a moment, before nodding ever so slightly. "Yeah, I ... I remember."

"And after we escaped Lucifer together," Patty continued, growing more confident with each word she spoke, "I admitted that I could have saved your family, if I had just given myself over to him. To Lucifer. He wanted me more than he wanted you. Do you remember what you said to me then?"

Dante nodded again and answered, his voice almost a murmur. "I told you that you made the right call, and that ... if it'd been me, I'd have ... I'd have done the same as you."

Patty lurched forwards and grabbed a hold of Dante's hands, softly though. She lifted them up and peered intently into his eyes, conveying as intense and earnest a look as she could. "Dante, do you trust me?"

Dante gazed into her eyes for a long moment, before smiling faintly. "Yeah, I trust you."

Patty closed her eyes and sighed heavily, before opening them again. "Then do you mind if we get out of here? I really don't want to stick around this place any longer than we have to."

Dante chortled. "Sure. Lead the way. Oh, by the way ..." he paused and gave Patty a somewhat coy look that puzzled her. She frowned at him as she was about to turn away.

"What?"

"Well ... after I said those things to you, I seem to remember we ... umm, kissed."

Patty froze completely. Yes, she remembered that as well. In fact it had been haunting her memories despite her best efforts to forget all about it. She felt a faint blush rising to her cheeks and she couldn't help swallowing. Dante pressed on.

"Any chance we could-"

Patty whirled around and strode away from him as fast as her feet could carry her without breaking into an outright run, her arms swinging almost mechanically like a robot.

"Really - not - the - right - time!" she declared, her face bright scarlet. Dante watched her march off and sighed.

"I'm starting to think I have rotten luck with girls ..."

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><p>They followed the chalk line through the school and it led them to a flight of stairs. The line continued over the stairs, leading them up, so up they went.<p>

And up.

And up.

After climbing the same flight of stairs for about the fifth time, Patty stopped and rubbed the side of her head. Dante did likewise, and when Patty rounded on him he merely shrugged.

"I don't get it," he said, utterly bewildered, "there's only three floors to this school."

"Hmm," said Patty, growing suspicious. They continued to follow the chalk line up for another three floors worth of stairs, before stopping once more. Patty noticed a sign on the wall which informed them they were on 2F, the second floor. She turned around and headed back down the stairwell, stopping at the next floor down.

The sign said they were on floor 2F.

Grinding her teeth now, Patty went down two more flights of stairs and then glared at the sign as if daring it to contradict her.

2F.

"Ahhh, what gives?" she snapped, stamping her foot. And then she realized - Morpheus. He was playing mind games with them. He had the power to reshape the dream they were experiencing. However ... he couldn't control her. Nor could he prevent Allen's breadcrumb trail from showing itself, or he surely would have done so already.

"What the hell do we do now?" Dante asked, at a loss for ideas. Patty frowned and then stood at the top of the stairs leading down. She found the chalk line, got down onto her knees and lightly brushed her hand over it. Yes, she could feel the chalk with her fingers. Closing her eyes, Patty followed it once more, this time by touch rather than by sight.

"Ehh ... what are you doing?" Dante asked, gawping at her odd behavior.

"Quiet!" Patty hissed, "I'm concentrating. Just follow me."

He did, watching her crawl forwards and feel her way around like a blind person. She followed the chalk line to the stairs leading up and awkwardly began to climb, before stopping.

"Dante?"

"Yeah?"

"I need you to do something. It'll sound silly, but just do it anyway, okay?"

"Err ... okay."

"Good. Now, get down on your knees behind me, grab a hold of my foot and close your eyes."

"... what?"

"Dante!"

"Okay, okay, sheesh." He got down on all fours behind her just as instructed, feeling stupid as he did so. Then he grabbed her foot and looked ahead ... and realized he could see up her skirt. As his face turned the same shade as his signature colour, Patty called out to him.

"Are your eyes closed?" she asked.

"Uh ... yeah!" Dante lied. There was a long pause between them both, after which Patty lashed out with her foot and kicked Dante in the face. He cried out in pain and then snarled. "What the hell was that for?"

"Stop looking up my skirt and close your eyes!" came the angry reply. Feeling suitably embarrassed, Dante finally closed his eyes, extremely glad that she couldn't see him right now.

Patty crawled up the stairs on all fours, feeling her way along and keeping track of the chalk line by touch. All the while Dante followed behind, holding onto her foot the entire time. After what seemed like an agonizingly long time, they reached the top and Patty led them _away_ from the stairwell. Once she was satisfied, she called out to Dante and they both opened their eyes and got up.

"It worked!" Patty exclaimed, pointing behind Dante. He turned and saw that yes, there were no more stairs leading up, and the sign said 3F. Dante blinked and scratched his head.

"I have no idea what you just did or how it worked, and I'm not sure I really want to either."

They followed Allen's trail of breadcrumbs further through the school, and after a few minutes arrived at yet another problem. They stood and stared. The chalk line split into two different directions, one continuing down the corridor, the other heading into a classroom.

"What the ..." Dante breathed. Patty groaned in annoyance.

"Morpheus _again_. He's planted a false trail to try and lead us the wrong way."

"That creep is really starting to get on my nerves!" said Dante, and Patty couldn't agree more. Now what? Which chalk line should they follow? If they went the wrong way, Morpheus would likely have enough opportunities to get them hopelessly lost that they might never find their way out. Dante strode ahead of her and pulled open the door to the classroom, intending to peek inside and see what was what.

"Huh," he said, finding himself instead faced with a brick wall. The chalk line that led to the doorway seemed to stop at the wall, whilst the other line carried on down the hallway, glowing faintly in the overhead lights. Dante turned to Patty and shrugged. "Well that was stupid of him. I guess we know which way is the right way."

"I guess," said Patty, faintly bemused. She set off down the corridor with Dante, intending to follow that chalk line, when something made her stop. She stood there and scowled, staring off into space.

"What's wrong?"

"That _was_ stupid," she said slowly, a faraway look in her eyes, "And Morpheus doesn't strike me as the stupid type. Overdressed, arrogant and a total control freak, yes, but stupid?" she turned and glared suspiciously at the classroom door, behind which lay a brick wall. Why create a false trail that led to an immediate dead end? It was completely useless as a trick because it would take them only seconds to see that it wasn't the way they were meant to go.

Unless ... it wasn't the way _Morpheus_ meant for them to go, and he had bricked up the _correct_ path, whilst helpfully leaving the _false_ path clear for them to follow.

"What are you doing?" Dante asked as Patty walked back to the doorway and opened it. He stopped beside her as she looked the brick wall up and down.

"This is the way we need to go," she said flatly.

"It's a dead end," said Dante in an equally as flat tone.

Patty rapped her knuckles on the wall and scowled. "Looks that way, yes ..." she pressed her palm against the bricks for a long moment, then abruptly pulled her hand away, clenched it into a fist, and then punched the wall. Had she tried this in the real world, she would have probably broken several of the bones in her hand and the wall would be completely unscathed.

It _wasn't_ the real world however, and as a lucid dreamer well aware of that fact, Patty's punch tore a hole through the wall instead and kicked up a cloud of dust and mortar. Dante waved the dust away, and as it cleared they both peered through the jagged opening in the wall to see a sparse, dark room beyond.

And a door. A door with a bright neon 'EXIT' sign above it.

Dante laughed. "Nice call."

"Thank you. Now lets get out of here, I'm getting really tired of this place."

They clambered through the hole in the wall and into the room on the other side, and once they were both safely through they dusted themselves off and jogged towards the exit.

"Bravo!" announced an all-too familiar voice. Morpheus materialized in front of them, blocking their way. He slowly applauded them, though his expression showed that he was anything but happy. Patty barred her teeth and flailed her arm at him.

"Get out of the way! We're leaving and you're not stopping us!"

"You know," said Morpheus, extending his hands as if about to impart some profound wisdom, "I think I misjudged you Miss Lowell. Here I was trying to put up barriers to stop you, and you just kept knocking them down ..." he chuckled and started to pace before the exit doorway. "I've been going about this all the wrong way."

"If you lay one on him, will that hurt him?" Dante asked Patty, jabbing a thumb at the demon. Morpheus tsk'd and wagged a finger.

"Now, now, lets not be so hasty. Or hostile. There's no need for violence, or petty mind games. I have been a very ungracious host," he admitted, bowing his head as if in apology of the fact, "But I'm ready to make up for that. After all, why try and force you to stay in the dream world? Far better that you should _want_ to stay ..."

Patty rolled her eyes at his self-important villain monologue. "Will you knock it off; there's no way I have any intention of sticking around this place, not with you in charge and the entire city trapped here too."

"Just hit him already," said Dante, growing impatient. He'd seen Patty punch through a brick wall and was eager to see what effect such a blow would have against the smug boy blocking their way. Morpheus stopped pacing and fixed them both with such a disconcerting look that Patty actually became worried.

"I'm through tormenting you both," he said, and despite the honesty behind these words they did not feel at all reassured, "Instead, I think it is time I gave you a little gift. Dreams are not only for nightmares you know ... they are for fantasies as well."

Before Patty could ask him just what he meant by that, he raised a hand and snapped his fingers. Everything went dark, and Patty felt herself falling, falling and falling and -

* * *

><p>Patty jerked awake, eyes wide with fright, breathing fast and shallow. She cast her gaze about frantically, and the feeling of panic started to gradually subside as she took in the safety and normality of her surroundings. She was in bed. In a big bed, covered by soft, warm sheets. The bed was in a room, a pleasant pastel coloured room filled with comforting, normal things you might expect to find in any bedroom. She was alone, warm rays of sunshine pouring through peach curtains and painting the walls with a golden light.<p>

"What-" she breathed, rapidly calming down and starting to relax. Something _was_ wrong though. Something was very wrong. Wrong with _her_. Patty looked down at herself and then very nearly screamed. She stopped herself before she could, but her eyes bulged as she took in her new appearance.

She was _big_. Big as in _grown up_. As she pulled back the covers and stared at herself, Patty realized that she was now unquestionably an adult. Shuffling about onto her knees, she stared down at herself and cupped her hands around two bulges that certainly had never been there before.

"Oh my - I have _breasts!_" she exclaimed, somewhat excitedly. She laughed and searched around for a mirror. There was a full-length one across the room, set into a decorative golden frame. Diving out of bed, Patty stood before the mirror and gaped at herself, at her new shape. And what a shapely shape it was! Hips! Curves! Thighs! She laughed again with delight and cupped a hand to her face, which was still recognizably hers, but also undeniably grown up.

A part of her knew this was all a dream, but it was so real and amazing that for the moment she shoved that fact aside and continued to stare at her reflection. She was wearing a very low-cut, short and ruffled night gown, and ... and ... oh god. Oh god ohgodohgod ... and a ring.

A wedding ring.

Patty looked away from the mirror, held up her left hand and stared numbly at the thing. There was no denying it. You would only wear a gold band like that, on that finger, in bed, if it was a wedding ring. She lowered her hand and inexplicably found herself staring across the room at a picture frame resting on a dressing table. The picture shocked her more than anything else thus far, and that was saying a _lot_.

"No," she mumbled, her brain in complete chaos, "No ... it can't ... no ... I don't ..."

She advanced towards the picture and snapped it up, holding the thing at arms length as if afraid it might bite her. It was a wedding picture. She could tell that because she was _in_ the picture and was wearing the most fantastic wedding gown she'd ever imagined. She looked stunning, but it was not herself that Patty was looking at.

It was the groom. The husband. The man that she was presumably married to.

It was Dante.

"Hey honey, are you up yet?" a voice called out. It was Dante's voice. The voice of the Dante she knew in the real world. "Breakfast is ready! Come on sleepy head, you can't snooze the whole day away!"

Patty dropped the picture onto the floor and whimpered.

"I'm ... I'm married," she murmured, in utter shock, "_To Dante!_"


	7. Chapter 7: Marital Bliss

**DMC: Sweet Dreams**

Chapter 7: Marital Bliss

* * *

><p>Patty stood there as footsteps approached, paralyzed like a deer facing down a set of onrushing headlights. The bedroom door opened and there was Dante, every bit as fully grown now as he was in the real world. He was dressed more casually than normal, wearing a loose fitting pair of jeans and an unbuttoned red shirt that revealed his bare chest.<p>

"So you are up then," he smirked and approached her. Patty was still far too shocked by the entire situation to be able to actually articulate herself in any remotely coherent fashion. All she could do as he drew near was stare with her wide blue eyes, her mind completely numb. When Dante reached her he took hold of her and scooped her up off the floor and into his arms. Then without another word he turned and swept out of the bedroom.

"-!" Patty tried to speak, but words completely failed her. Dante carried her as if she were still a child, through a lavish looking house that she only caught vague glimpses of. He felt warm as he held her close, and she had to actually resist the urge to snuggle up to him.

"I was going to bring you breakfast in bed," Dante said as he carried her down an extravagant carved wooden staircase, "but then I remembered that you didn't like that before. So ..." He carried her through a doorway and Patty had to hold a hand up to shield her eyes from the sudden explosion of sunlight. After a few seconds her vision adjusted to the glare and she saw that he had brought her to some kind of large glass conservatory, filled with all manner of beautiful plants and flowers and greenery.

There was a small round table set for breakfast, and Dante carried Patty over to it and gently laid her in the waiting chair, which had a soft cushion on it. She stared at the breakfast Dante had evidently prepared for her and was further astonished to see that it wasn't pizza _or_ strawberry sundae. There was everything from bacon and eggs to a fresh jug of chilled orange juice and a pot of tea. Everything was neat and meticulous, and the smell of it all made Patty's mouth water. It was pleasantly warm here too, owing to the sunlight passing through the glass and heating the very air.

"I made you tea, not coffee," Dante went on as he helped slide her chair closer to the table, "because I remembered that didn't like coffee. The eggs are just how you like them as well."

Patty was speechless. She turned and regarded Dante intently, as if wary that someone had done away with him and taken his place. He wasn't behaving remotely the way Patty had come to expect.

"What about you?" she managed to say at last. Dante shrugged.

"Already ate. I got up a couple of hours ago and did some cleaning." He grinned a little. "You should have seen me with that apron on; I bet I looked silly in it."

Dante ... _cleaning?_ What? Just ... no. No. Dante _never_ cleaned. Ever. This was too much. Dante making her a perfect breakfast in this wonderful little garden, after cleaning the house? Unbelievable. Of course this _was_ a dream, but it sure looked, smelled and felt real enough. Before Patty could say anything further, Dante leaned down and kissed her on the cheek, which quickly turned bright red. He pulled back a little and spoke in a low, almost inviting voice.

"I'm going to hit the shower," he purred, "Feel free to join me if you like, I could always use a hand to scrub away all the dirt ..."

Patty's mouth hung open and her brain ran repeated checks over those words as if doubting that they had actually been uttered, much less to _her_. Dante departed, leaving her sitting in the warm flower filled greenhouse alone with her breakfast.

"Ahh-hhh-hh," Patty made an odd sort of noise as she realized that yes, Dante _had_ actually just invited her to have a shower with him. Her body temperature promptly skyrocketed, and she had to fan herself with her hand to keep from passing out. She gripped the edge of the table tight for support and breathed heavily.

"Get a grip, this is a dream," she told herself firmly. Then she moaned and slumped her head down on the table. Some dream! Morpheus had said that dreams were for fantasies as well as nightmares, and that much was certainly true. Was this _her_ fantasy, or ... no, it was hers. There was just no way Dante would fantasize something like this. She was just a kid after all, and he'd made it clear often enough that he didn't see her that way. Patty on the other hand ... she groaned again. Maybe she did have dreams like this, she couldn't say. She rarely remembered her own dreams.

Well obviously she still needed to find a way out of here and escape the dream world. With Dante of course. But Dante was ... was ... in the _shower_ at the moment, and Patty didn't exactly have the courage to go and tell him what needed to be done. Somehow she felt that he wouldn't bother to cover himself up if she did, and if she saw him ... saw him ... _saw_ him like that, she'd be apt to pass out. Could you pass out in a dream? Maybe. She didn't want to find out.

So! She would wait for him to finish. And while she was waiting she might as well eat something, right? It might be dream food, but it looked utterly delicious. Lifting her head off the table, Patty got stuck in.

It really was the best breakfast she'd ever had. Heavenly, even.

* * *

><p>After breakfast, Dante was still not out of the shower. How dirty could he possibly be, Patty wondered?<p>

_... I wish I hadn't just thought that._

If she was going to try escaping from this dream, then she might as well be properly dressed. The low cut nightgown was making her feel self-conscious, and she wanted to cover up. She returned to her bedroom and searched around for a wardrobe. It didn't take her long to find it: a massive walk in wardrobe easily as big as her bedroom itself, with everything she had ever even imagined wearing, and some things she hadn't. In fact she only had to remember a dress or outfit she'd seen once in a magazine or shop, and a moment later there it would be hanging there amidst a dozen other things.

Patty picked out a ruffled black gothic dress adorned with white ribbons, and then eagerly tried it on. As she examined herself in the full length mirror she'd used earlier, she realized that the outfit she'd picked out was perhaps a bit childish ... the kind of thing that would suit her as she was in the real world. Still, she liked it regardless and decided to stick with it. There were many more appropriately adult outfits to chose from, but she felt more at ease with this one. That thought made her head feel slightly ... strange, but the feeling quickly passed.

"You look great."

Patty spun and saw Dante standing in the doorway. Thankfully he had a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair was slick with water and steam curled off him like vapors from a hot cup of tea. He entered the bedroom and dropped the towel, prompting Patty to blush furiously and spin around. Since she had been checking herself out in the mirror, this meant that she now found herself facing the mirror once more, and could in fact see Dante quite well in it. She hastily clapped her hands over her eyes, and felt so warm that she was sure steam must be rolling off herself now as well.

"Geez Dante! Put something on!" she complained. She was too young to be seeing things like that! Wasn't she? Dante chuckled.

"Still shy as ever I see. You never did grow up, did you Patty?"

Patty said nothing, instead waiting until she heard what were hopefully the sounds of Dante getting dressed. She was just about to ask if he was decent when she felt his hand on her arm. He spun her around and the next thing she knew he was kissing her, full on the lips this time. Patty opened her eyes wide and instinctively felt as if she should protest, but then she stopped herself. Wasn't this exactly what she wanted? She'd sat around during lazy afternoons, daydreaming about kissing Dante again. What did she have to complain about? Dante pulled away and smiled earnestly at Patty, who remained speechless.

"I'm the luckiest guy alive," he said, and actually sounded as if he meant it, as if he wasn't just joking around. He sounded as if he _believed_ what he'd just said, which made the words all the more astonishing.

"Why is that exactly?" Patty asked, her voice quavering slightly. Dante gave a short laugh.

"You have to ask?"

She nodded. Dante looked at her oddly, as if wondering if she were ill or upset. "I married you, of course. Why else?" He reached up and playfully brushed his finger over the tip of her nose, which tickled her. "Listen - I recorded that show for you last night, just like you asked. It's all set up in the front room, ready to play. I have a few things to take care of, so why don't you go ahead and watch it?"

Patty nodded again, finding it difficult to speak. This whole ... dream was quite overwhelming. She knew that she should tell Dante, remind him that they were trapped and needed to escape, but for some reason she kept quiet instead. Dante seemed to sense her uneasiness and gently lifted her chin up with his thumb.

"Are you okay Patty? If there's anything wrong, tell me. Have I done something to upset you?"

"N-no! It's not that ..." and he wasn't upsetting her, not _exactly_. He was behaving more like she wanted him to behave, like she would imagine him as behaving during her idle daydreams. He just wasn't acting ... well, like Dante. Was that so bad? She'd always thought that Dante could do with smoothing over some of his rougher edges. Of course this wasn't _real_, and his behaviour was just being warped by the dream world.

So?

"It's nothing," she smiled and shook her head, "I'm fine Dante, really."

She was fine, wasn't she?

* * *

><p>Patty gawked at the giant widescreen hi-def television that sat in the extremely cozy front room Dante had mentioned. She sat back into the squishiest and most relaxing chair she'd ever had the pleasure to sit in and raised the remote control. Sure enough there was a recording lined up, one of those sappy romance shows she loved to watch so much. In fact it was an episode she had missed because it had been bumped by some news broadcast. She'd really wanted to catch it again.<p>

A few minutes into the episode however, the screen started to get washed out by static. The sound likewise turned to an annoying hiss and Patty frowned and tried pressing buttons on the remote to fix it. Nothing worked.

The hissing faded away, replaced with the familiar and haughty tones of Allen Lowell. There was no picture on the screen, just snow, but it was his voice sure enough.

"Patty? Are you there? Can you hear me?"

"Allen?" Patty dropped the remote and lurched forwards in her chair. "I can hear you!"

"About time," he grumbled, sounding extremely frustrated, "I have been trying to get a hold of you again. What ever is going on? You almost came round, Dante as well. Then you slipped back under, even deeper than you were before."

"I-" Patty hesitated and glanced around at her comfortable surroundings, "Morpheus switched dreams on us. Everything is ... different."

Allen sighed impatiently. "That is to be expected, but there is an other issue young lady."

"What?" Patty asked nervously. He had said 'young lady' in an very peeved sort of way.

"Why are you no longer _trying_ to wake up? I have been striving to show you the way out for the last half an hour, but this time you haven't been even remotely receptive to my help. You have stopped making any kind of effort. Would you care to tell me why?"

Something about his tone suggested he already knew the answer to that, and Patty found it difficult to come up with some kind of explanation that wouldn't be utterly humiliating. After a protracted silence, Allen sighed wearily again.

"Morpheus has obviously realized that he cannot stop you by force, and is no doubt trying to entice you into willingly remaining asleep. I cannot guess just what kind of scenario could achieve that, but I can remind you what you must surely be aware of; none of it is real."

"I know that," Patty murmured quietly, guilt stabbing into her heavy heart. She _knew_ that she should have told Dante and tried to wake him up, she knew what was at stake. Why hadn't she tried then?

As if she didn't know the answer to that as well ...

"Dreams can be as much a paradise as they can be a hell, Miss Patty," Allen went on, "It can be extremely difficult to walk away from them, especially when one is lucid as you are, and know just how different things are from the harsh reality of the waking world."

Patty stared at the floor in front of her, feeling the oppressive weight of responsibility envelope her like a dark cloud. And also feeling the enticing prospect of just letting that responsibility go and losing herself to this dream. "Allen," she said slowly, preparing to ask a question that she too already knew the answer to.

"Yes?"

"What will happen if I don't want to wake up?"

There was no answer. Only silence, and the dance of static on the screen in front of her. Allen didn't answer because he didn't need to, and he knew it. Obviously if she didn't want to wake up then she never would. The city would go on sleeping, its inhabitants under the complete control of a demon that enjoyed playing with their minds for amusement. And then ... who knows? One thing she did know though - if she woke up now, then everything would go back to the way it was. She would go back to being a kid again, and Dante would go back to treating her like one. She'd never have another chance to be with him like this ever again.

She'd lose him. Forever.

"All I can say, Miss Patty," Allen spoke up one final time, "Is that sometimes when our dreams come true, we learn that they aren't actually what we really wanted. I hope that this will prove to be so in this case ... for everyone's sake."

The front room was empty. Patty was gone. The static remained on the television set for a moment longer, then winked out.


	8. Chapter 8: Adults Only

Okay, here's the penultimate chapter. I'm posting this and the final chapter together, and then I'm going back to taking some time off from writing fanfiction. I need a break. I'm tired, ironically enough, and my writing is suffering because of it.

* * *

><p><strong>DMC: Sweet Dreams<strong>

Chapter 8: Adults Only

* * *

><p>The extravagant house that Patty and Dante apparently lived in came with an enormous garden of simply staggering size and scope. The kind of thing you'd expect attached to a palace. Patty spent nearly a whole hour wandering around it, and she still barely covered a fraction of it. The whole thing was beautiful, and Patty felt as if she could stay here forever, basking in the sunlight and enjoying the sweet fragrance of the flowers.<p>

She was in a dream, but it was the most wonderful dream ever, and she didn't ever have to wake up from it. Here she was grown up, an adult, and no one would ever talk down to her or brush her off as unimportant. And here she had Dante.

Patty sat on the emerald green grass and tilted her head back, gazing up at the clear blue sky, her eyes reflecting everything around her like mirrors. She felt so completely at peace, so contented. In the back of her mind was a tiny little nagging thought that she had a job to do. That people were relying on her. She ignored it.

"Guess who?" said a voice, as a pair of gentle hands covered Patty's eyes. She giggled and tugged them away.

"I was wondering when you'd come looking for me," she said, turning and peering up at Dante with a smile. He sat down beside her and produced a vibrant red rose, as if by magic. Patty frowned and stared at it, wondering why it made her feel slightly uneasy. Dante didn't seem to notice however, and he carefully placed the rose in her hair.

"There you go," he said brightly, "Roses are red, violets are blue ... and I can never remember how the rest of it goes."

Patty smirked a little at that and tilted her head slightly. "Sugar is sweet, and so are you," she finished for him. "Am I sweet, Dante?"

Dante chuckled and tickled her under her chin. "As a strawberry sundae, Patty."

Patty sighed at his words and looked away, staring off into space. This was what she wanted, wasn't it? This was her dream. Her dream. And she could do whatever she wanted. But what about Dante? What did he want?

"Dante?"

"Yes honey?"

Honey. Patty felt a stab of emotion to hear Dante speak to her that way. She smiled faintly and closed her eyes, letting the sun warm her all the way through. After a moments hesitation she continued.

"Do you ... do you love me, Dante?"

"Of course I do. Why else would I marry you?"

Good question. Why _would_ Dante marry her? Aside from finding himself inside one of her fantasies of course. Dante snorted suddenly, startling Patty. She glanced over at him as he folded his arms and stared sullenly at the ground.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing, it's just ... I'm surprised you wanted to marry me. I've never exactly been husband material, you know? Always had rotten luck with women. Never thought I'd ever be married."

Patty watched him, her mouth hanging open slightly. It was true. Despite the fact that Dante's cocky, laid back attitude led one to believe he would have no trouble at all with women, the opposite was actually the case. Patty had never even seen him with a date. Sure, he had his rough edges, and she despaired at his behaviour sometimes. He was still a good person at heart, and she knew that. She'd seen it herself. That was part of the reason she felt the way she did.

Dante smirked oddly and met Patty's gaze, and she thought she could see a touch of sadness in those serene blue eyes of his. "I guess my luck must have changed, if someone like you really wants to be with me," he said quietly.

"Someone ... like me?" Patty murmured.

"Yup. You're not just beautiful Patty, you have a gentle soul, and a kind, caring heart. You've seen me at my worst and you still want to be with me. I can't think why, but you do. And yes, I love you for that."

Patty gaped at him for a moment and then threw herself at him in an embrace, wrapping her arms around his neck as she hugged him tightly. Tears splashed her eyelashes as she squeezed her eyes shut, and she could feel Dante's hands on her back as he held her in his arms. She released him and pulled away enough so that they could look into each others eyes, and they both stayed that way for some time, neither saying a word.

Then Patty leaned close and kissed Dante, really giving it her all. This wasn't the shy little kiss they'd shared back in 1984, this was a kiss that Patty intended to convey just what she wanted to do then. She was an adult now, and it was high time she did what adults do when they were in love. Dante seemed surprised at first, but soon loosened up and kissed her back.

Dante fell back against the soft, warm grass, Patty laying on top of him and kissing him as if she were starving. Every single nerve she had was on fire, alive and singing bliss to her. Everything was exactly right, perfect. Her heart was beating so fast it almost pained her. And then Dante reached out and slipped his hands under the ruffled skirt of her dress, and touched her in places she would blush to even name.

That was when it all went wrong. When everything became wrong. The whole thing. One moment it had felt perfect and right and she had yearned for it. But when Dante touched her that way, she realized exactly what she was doing and where it was going, and suddenly felt nauseous. She stopped kissing Dante, stopped running her hands through his hair, and cried out as if in terrible pain.

Patty jerked away from Dante and pulled back so swiftly that she fell over. Whimpering, she scrambled several feet away and then stopped, panting heavily, a hand clutched to her chest as if to try and stop her heart from bursting. Dante sat up on his elbows and gaped at her in astonishment.

"What's wrong?" he asked, genuinely puzzled by her reaction. Patty wailed.

"This! This whole thing! Ahhh!" She clutched her hands to her head and shook it from side to side. "What am I even thinking?"

Dante sat fully upright, his expression one of hurt confusion. "Did I do something to upset you? Did I do something wrong?"

Patty whimpered again and buried her face in her hands in shame. "It isn't you Dante, it's me. Ugh. How can I even think of ... I'm just a kid!" she snapped suddenly, lowering her hands and glaring at Dante emphatically. This only served to confuse him even more.

"No you're not, you're my wife. What are you talking about? I thought you wanted this?"

"I-" Patty hesitated and stared at the grass between them. She flinched. "I thought it was, but I'm ... I'm just not ready for this." She squeezed her eyes shut and again shook her head. "I'm a kid Dante, I'm just a kid. No matter how I might look, I'm not an adult. And I'm not ready for this at all."

She got unsteadily to her feet and clenched her hands fiercely shut, her arms shaking. She glared at Dante once again and stamped her foot on the ground. Despite all of this, she wasn't angry at him, not at all. She was angry at herself. Furious.

"You don't love me at all!" she yelled, her eyes filling up with tears.

"What? That's not true, of course I do!"

"No, you don't! I'm just a kid Dante, and you're not! How _could_ you love me? I'm like your annoying little sister!"

Dante got to his feet now as well and reached out to her, but Patty yanked away from him and took a step back. She sniffed and smiled a humorless smile.

"You're only behaving this way because Morpheus is making you. You're dreaming and you don't even know it. But I do, and I played along and ..." Patty winced as she realized the fullness of her own selfish behaviour. "I was actually taking advantage of you. I almost ... almost ..." she couldn't bring herself to speak the awful truth aloud, because the word was too horrible to even pass her lips. _Rape_. She had almost raped Dante. It sounded laughable, but it was true. Dante wasn't in control of his actions, and he couldn't say no to her. Dante _would_ say no to her if he could. The fact that she had been about to _do_ that to him when he couldn't even tell her to stop ... it made her ill just thinking about it.

The fact was, if their positions were reversed and Dante had decided to sleep with her, and she couldn't refuse him ... she'd feel revolted. She felt revolted even now, with herself. It was a miracle she had come to her senses and stopped.

Patty made an effort to compose herself and then faced Dante. Sniffing again, she nodded once, her expression set. "I'm sorry, Dante. I'm sorry I almost ... I don't love you, not that way. I thought I did, but it was just a stupid schoolgirl crush." She reached up and tried her best to wipe away some of the tears before continuing. "We're leaving now. We're going to wake up, and when we do ... if you remember any of this at all, I want you to know that I'm sorry. And I ... I hope you can forgive me."

Dante didn't seem to understand a word she was saying, but that didn't matter. They were leaving. Patty was so set on waking up now, so ready to stop living in a dream, that when she turned around she found herself facing a doorway. There was a plaque on the door which simply said 'EXIT'. Certain that Morpheus would wise up any second now, Patty wasted no more time and grabbed Dante by the wrist. She yanked the door open and without a moments hesitation stepped through.

* * *

><p>Dante sat bolt upright, eyes wide. Then he winced and pressed a hand to his head as if he had one hell of a hangover. He groaned loudly as reality hit him like a high-speed truck, and wasn't very kind about doing so. Glancing down at himself, he noticed that his clothes were sodden.<p>

"What the hell? Why am I soaked through?" he demanded, unaware that Patty had earlier thrown a bucket of cold water over him in an effort to wake him. Across the office, Patty was sitting up with her hands wrapped around her ankles and her eyes downcast.

"You had a wet dream," she muttered, a half-hearted attempt at humour. She looked and sounded wretched. Dante stared at her, then at the floating book that hovered near her. The thing rotated until the front cover was facing him, and Dante got the feeling that the blue jewel on the cover was looking at him.

"Well it is about time you woke up," the book said haughtily in a metallic sounding voice, "It will be sunrise soon, and there's still the issue of Morpheus to deal with."

"Morpheus?" Dante parroted. There was another stab of pain in his head, and he felt a flurry of memories flutter through his foggy mind. Dreams. Nightmares. And ... more.

"There's a demon somewhere in the city," Patty droned, her voice flat and lifeless, "He put the city to sleep, and no one will be able to wake up unless you kill him."

"Yes, quite," said the book, "And we went to not inconsiderable trouble to wake you up. All because Miss Patty here says you were up to the task. Well? Are you?"

Dante didn't know what the hell had just happened or what was going on, but if a demon was causing trouble and needed killing, that he could do. He got up, retrieved his overcoat and weapons, and headed for the door. He stopped halfway there to glance sideways at Patty, who seemed to be utterly miserable for some reason. Dante felt more vague memories tease his recollection, but couldn't bring any of them into focus.

He frowned. "You all right, Patty?"

Patty Lowell didn't even look at him. She just kept staring at the floor. "No," she said flatly. Dante's frown deepened.

"You wanna come with? If you've got a bone to pick with this demon-"

"No," Patty interrupted sharply. She still did not look at him however. "That stuff is for adults only, Dante. I don't want to see it."

He watched her oddly for a moment longer, before shrugging and heading for the door again. Women. He'd never understand them.

* * *

><p>Allen Lowell watched the Son of Sparda depart, astonished by how similar he was to his father. Perhaps he would be up to the task of slaying Morpheus at that. Meanwhile Patty ...<p>

"Are you all right my dear?" he asked soothingly. It was pretty clear that she was upset by something that had happened in the dream world. All he knew though was that one moment she was firmly entrenched in dreamland, and the next she was tanking out of it as if she were on fire. Just what had given her such a strong desire to awaken, he couldn't say. It must have been something powerful.

Tears rolled down Patty's cheeks and she made no effort to stem the flow. She blinked once and sniffled. "You were right," she said wearily.

"Oh? About what?"

"Sometimes when our dreams come true, it turns out they weren't what we wanted after all."

Allen Lowell didn't have a heart anymore, being that he was just a disembodied spirit bound to a grimoire. He still had a soul though, and felt his metaphorical heart sink to see her so saddened. So he had been right after all. He just wished she didn't have to learn such a painful lesson.

Patty sank sideways onto the floor, curled up and sobbed loudly.


	9. Chapter 9: Moving On

The final chapter. It's very short. To be honest, this fic didn't turn out the way I planned. I was going to do a lot more reality bending head games, and some Matrix-esque battles making use of the dream world setting. Stuff happened though, and I got really tired and upset, and I need a little break from writing.

No, there is no battle between Dante and Morpheus. If you were looking forwards to that, then sorry to disappoint. I just didn't feel like writing up a fight that is a forgone conclusion from the moment it starts. Plus I got the feeling that people didn't care about everything else I was writing, and only wanted to see a punch up. Well, this 'aint no action flick folks.

I'd like to thank everyone following this, thanks for reading and I really hope you enjoyed it. If you didn't ... then sorry. I try my best.

* * *

><p><strong>DMC: Sweet Dreams<strong>

Chapter 9: Moving On

* * *

><p>Dante tossed a glass vial through the air, where it was snatched by a deft hand. Lady examined the vial, holding it up to the light to reveal that it was full of glittering sand. She lowered it and regarded Dante.<p>

"And just what is this?" she asked. Dante leaned back against his desk, arms crossed, and shrugged.

"Just what's left of that demon when I was finished with him. That's one Sandman that won't be creeping around people's dreams anymore."

Lady examined the vial for a moment more before sighing and tucking it away. Well, the job was done. The people at the hospital had all woken up now, as had everyone else in the city. After a long night of troubled dreams of course. From what she'd been able to gather, if Dante hadn't killed the demon responsible, she would still be in the land of nod, same as everybody else in the city. So really, he'd done a lot more than just identify an obscure marking for her.

"Here's your payment," she said, tossing him a very small bundle of rolled up notes. Dante caught them and glared at the meager sum despondently.

"Anyone ever tell you you're a heartless greedy gold digger, Lady?" he muttered. Lady didn't take the remark personally. She was used to it by now.

"Only the people who owe me money, Dante." She tilted her head slightly and gave him a teasing smile. "Say, why don't you treat Patty to something nice? Way I hear it, if she hadn't dragged your sorry ass out of the dream world, that demon would still have free rein over all of us. I reckon you owe her as much as you do me."

Dante dropped the money on his desk and scoffed. "Well I would, but the kid's been avoiding me ever since it happened. I get the feeling I did something to piss her off. And the annoying thing is, I don't even remember what it was."

Lady frowned, puzzled at that. She shrugged it off though, and headed for the door, giving Dante a wave as she went.

"See you around."

Once outside, Lady had to pull out her shades and put them on, the glare from the sun was so intense. It was sweltering hot as well, and the streets were practically cooking. She could really use a drink right about now. Or even an ice cream.

"I wonder ..." she murmured thoughtfully.

* * *

><p>At Restaurant Fredi the air conditioning had still not been fixed yet. Consequently, the place was devoid of customers. All save one at least, who sat alone at one of the booths, poking at a strawberry sundae without really eating it.<p>

"I thought I might find you here," said Lady, sliding into the seat opposite the girl. Patty sat leaning against one hand, while she twirled her spoon around idly with the other. She seemed, if anything, glum.

"Hi Lady," she murmured. She didn't look up, instead she just kept staring at the sundae in front of her whilst exuding an air of general melancholy. Lady snatched one of the strawberries from Patty's dish and popped it in her mouth. The girl neither complained nor reacted.

"I'm going to make a huge intuitive leap and say that something is bothering you," said Lady with astonishing insight. Patty exhaled sharply.

"That obvious, huh?"

Silence fell between the two, broken only by Lady drumming her fingers on the table. After a while, she leaned back and crossed her arms and legs. The waitress Cindy skated over to take her order, and she asked for a drink, which was brought in short order. Ice cubes floated in the fizzing liquid, bobbing about lazily.

"You wanna talk about it?" Lady asked after a while. Patty sighed heavily and continued to poke at her sundae.

"There's not much to say," she replied, her voice growing somewhat irate, "I had a stupid crush on Dante, and that demon used it to try and trap me in the dream world." She finally set down her spoon and actually looked Lady in the eye, her expression deadly serious. "I was married to him, you know. In my dream."

Lady opened her mouth to say something, but when she did she realized that she didn't actually have any words for the occasion. She resisted the temptation to laugh, because from the look on Patty's face she might just upend her uneaten sundae over her head if she did. She coughed instead.

"Married? To Dante?"

Patty looked away and stared out of the window. "I know. Sounds stupid, doesn't it?"

Yes, thought Lady, it did. In fact she even said as much. "No arguments there. I can't even imagine why you would want to marry that lazy pig."

"I thought I was in love with him."

"And are you?"

Patty regarded her and frowned. Lady seemed to be seriously asking her. She wasn't joking, wasn't just humoring her for the sake of being nice. She thought about what to say for a moment.

"No," she said at last, "But it took a lot for me to realize that, and I ... I almost ..." she clenched her hands tight, her fists almost trembling with the memory of it, startling Lady. Lady watched her closely, taking in all the little signals she was giving off, and put that together with what she knew. She almost gasped.

"... oh," she said, eyebrows shooting up.

"Yes," said Patty quietly.

"Oh," said Lady again, unfolding her arms and sitting there in shock. Patty pushed her strawberry sundae away and sat back once more.

"I stopped myself before it went too far. I'm just a kid Lady, and I don't care about Dante that way. I just wanted to be an adult so badly ..." she trailed off, before picking up again a few seconds later, "I guess you could say Morpheus did me a favour."

"Really?"

Patty nodded. "Last night made me realize ... being a kid isn't so bad after all, and I shouldn't try and grow up too fast. Not if I don't have to."

Lady took a sip of her drink and then smirked. "You know Patty, you're pretty smart for someone your age. And seriously ... you can do a lot better than Dante. He might be a legendary devil hunter, but he'd make for a lousy boyfriend. Or husband. Trust me."

"I know that now. Oh, Lady - here," Patty reached around and then dropped a small black velvet bag on the table between them. Lady stared at it.

"What is it?"

"They're for you. To cover the debt Dante owes you. Give him a clean slate. I want to make up for ... well, forcing him to play house with me when I should have been waking him up."

Frowning, Lady scooped up the bag and opened it. Her eyes went wide in utter disbelief, and she held out a hand and poured the contents of the bag into her hand.

They were diamonds.

"What ... are these real?"

Patty grinned and nodded. Lady gaped at her, then at the tiny glittering gems nestled in the palm of her gloved hand. She very nearly choked as her mind started calculating the value of what she had just been given.

"How?" Lady breathed in astonishment. Patty extended her arms and shrugged, as if handing over a million dollars worth of diamonds was no big deal.

"A dead alchemist relative of mine made them for me out of coal. He thought it would cheer me up."

Lady didn't understand a word of what she was saying, but a part of her didn't care. _Diamonds!_ Actual honest to goodness diamonds! And they looked top quality as well. Unbelievable. And Patty had just given them to her. She frowned again and held her hand out towards the girl.

"Wait, there's far too much here. This is enough to cover the money Dante owes me ten times over. I can't take all this."

Patty slid out of her seat and smoothed her dress down, before regarding Lady with a sweet smile. "Keep the rest. As a gift from me." She winked and then strode out of the diner without another word, leaving a flabbergasted Lady behind with a fortune in flawless diamonds. A moment later Cindy skated over with a bill for Patty's uneaten strawberry sundae and slapped it down on the table.

"Hey, where'd she go?" She glanced about and realized that the little girl was nowhere in sight. "I don't believe it - she ran off without paying!"

Lady slipped the diamonds back into the little black bag and then raised a finger to get the waitress' attention.

"Actually Cindy, I'll pay for it."


End file.
